


We’ll walk together (I won’t let you stumble)

by Voleyn



Series: ABCs [1]
Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Fix-It of Sorts, Fluff, Happy Ending, Humor, Light Angst, M/M, but literally just pure fluff, canon say what, im turning this canon around, like blink and you miss it, this is HAPPY gd it, tiny helping of smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-21
Updated: 2020-07-29
Packaged: 2021-03-04 21:15:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,999
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25413034
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Voleyn/pseuds/Voleyn
Summary: Snippets of Levi and Eren's relationship through the years, from Levi's POV.
Relationships: Levi/Eren Yeager
Series: ABCs [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1840597
Comments: 4
Kudos: 93





	1. A-E

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had a friend choose 26 words and she included prompts (italicized under the word) for some of them. It’s an exercise to try to get back into writing again, but it got a teensy bit out of hand because fuck, each prompt was supposed to be like 2-4 sentences CHRIST. 
> 
> So instead you get a few chapters of this drivel.

**Anticipation**

With the eradication of the titans and the defeat of Marley, the Survey Corps’ training regimen had shifted. There was a whole entire world of other humans out there now. With the war over but still fresh in all of their minds, the regimen had changed from preparing to slay titans to fighting other humans, which meant an increase in hand-to-hand combat training.

And so Levi found himself outside one cloudy autumn afternoon, watching casually as Eren sparred with some of the new recruits. The temperature had been gradually cooling, but it was still hot enough that Eren had discarded his shirt somewhere along the way, and Levi couldn’t help but admire.

Eren was beautiful, and Levi’s eyes wandered over the rippling muscles, all the tanned, golden skin covered in a thin sheen of sweat. Eren must have noticed because he paused to throw a glance over his shoulder.

Levi absently licked his lips, mouth suddenly gone dry, and Eren’s eyes followed the movement keenly. His throat bobbed as he swallowed, emerald-green eyes darkening in a silent promise of _later_ , and anticipation coiled hot and heavy in Levi’s stomach.

**Block**

_Levi reminds Eren to block in hand to hand combat._

Eren coughs as Levi’s fist slams into his stomach and he staggers back, narrowly managing not to lose his balance – _or his breakfast,_ Levi thinks to himself.

Levi waves his stinging fist absentmindedly. “You need to remember to block, Jeager,” he drones, watching as the kid straightens again, wiping a bit of sweat off his face. He nods and clenches his jaw, raising his fists in determination.

“Again,” he calls, feeling Mikasa’s dark eyes on him, and he can’t help but wonder if she’s going to jump into the ring and try to tackle him herself. Brats, he thought with a roll of his eyes.

Still, he waits for Eren to prepare, knowing that he can afford to go a bit harder on the kid, seeing as his goddamn shifter abilities let him heal insanely fast. Any bruises or cuts Levi left him with would be gone by tomorrow.

He braces his feet as Eren rushes him again, and he knocks the kid back again, and again, barely breaking a sweat. Still, he’s impressed by Eren’s determination as the shifter keeps picking himself back up, each time with renewed determination to at least land one hit.

It’s some time later that the dirt beneath his foot shifts and Levi loses his balance a bit. Eren zeroes in on it right away and lands a solid hit on his jaw. His eyes widen and he grunts as pain flashes through him, making him stumble backwards with the force. Eren doesn’t waste the opportunity and lurches forward, grabbing his wrists as they tumble back.

A groan tears from his throat as he lands harshly on his back and Eren pins his wrists above his head, straddling him as Levi tries to regain his bearings.

“You should have blocked that, Captain,” Eren says breathlessly, though something triumphant glitters in his eyes. Fuck, the kid is panting above him, a trickle of sweat falling from his forehead and he should be disgusted, but all he feels is a surge of raw lust at the sight.

He licks his lips – when had they gotten so dry – and Eren’s eyes dart down to them. He sees Eren’s tanned throat move as he swallows and this is _dangerous_ , Levi thinks, aware of Mikasa’s angry eyes upon them.

So he brings his knee up sharply instead, making Eren gasp a bit at the sudden blow. His wrists are released and he shoves Eren off of him, rising to his feet and dusting himself off a bit.

“Never get cocky, brat,” he says darkly, watching as Eren nods sheepishly and struggles to his feet.

Pushing away intrusive thoughts – like how he had _liked_ being pinned down, fuck no, stop – he instead calls, “Again, Jeager.”

**Cower**

_Levi refuses to cower in the face of adversity._

He heard Eren cry his name as he was blown backwards, feeling a sharp pain blooming in his left eye as he landed, and the vision in it went black.

A bolt of unnatural lightning split the sky and Levi looked up to see Eren’s titan looming, hooded eyes blazing as he towered over the battlefield.

The Marleyan soldiers retreated a bit and the ground shook as Eren stepped forward. Levi struggled to his feet, blood pouring from his eye as he let the spent cartridges drop from the guns of his anti-personnel gear. He fumbled for new ones, having to feel around a bit because fuck, he couldn’t see anything to his left.

He pulled them from his belt, and they snapped into place with a click. He shot out his hooks and flew up to Eren’s shoulder, disregarding the scorching heat of the titan’s skin as he landed unsteadily.

Eren’s head tilted a bit to look at him and when Levi nodded, Eren let out an earsplitting wail and charged as Levi braced himself. They were facing impossible odds, he knew, but he had never cowered in the face of death. If today was the end, then he would stay at Eren’s side fighting until the last breath.

**Damaged**

_Levi is damaged but Eren helps keep him together._

Levi is broken in certain ways. He knows enough about himself to be able to admit it, though not to anyone else. He can’t even admit it outright to Eren, but somehow, the shifter knows.

Eren knows that when Levi raises his voice and curses at him for an injury, it’s just his way of showing concern because he doesn’t know how to be gentle.

When Levi is having a bad day and everything seems _dirty_ and his skin crawls until he can’t take it anymore, he orders everyone to clean. Eren is the one that hikes up his sleeves and throws himself into it with more gusto than anyone else.

Eren is the one that brings him tea and sits next to him in his office into the early hours of the morning, because even though Levi can’t talk about the nightmares that keep him from sleeping, Eren is haunted by his own demons.

Levi is broken in ways that cannot be fixed, but Eren is the glue that helps him holds the pieces together. Even though there’s roughness that are apparent on the edges of the cracks, Eren never lets go.

**Endure**

_Levi can endure anything Eren throws at him._

“Fuck, I can’t take any more,” Levi gasps when Eren stills inside of him _again_ , and he wants to sob as the feeling of release is snatched away from him.

He can feel his cock hanging heavy and red and throbbing between his legs. He makes a move to reach down and grasp it because he’s so fucking close it almost hurts, but his wrist is grabbed gently and guided down back onto the bed.

“You can,” Eren murmurs gently into his ear, smoothing a hand down his side in an attempt to calm him down. “You’re being so good, just hold it a bit longer, Captain.”

He clenches his teeth as Eren slides his hands underneath his thighs once more, pushing them up as he resumes thrusting gently inside. The angle has him hitting Levi’s prostate again, making him throw back his head as fire sizzles through him, a moan torn from his throat. His orgasm wells inside him again and he’s almost there, and _again_ Eren stops just a second before it hits him.

This time he breaks and a wrecked sob tears its way out of his throat, but Eren is there and he’s kissing away the tears that leak from his eyes and whispering encouragement and praise that soothes an ache deep inside of him.

And when Eren thinks he’s come down from the peak enough, he starts moving again, and Levi _endures_.


	2. F - J

**Follow**

_Eren’s eyes follow Levi wherever he goes._

Levi knew that people tended to watch him wherever he went. He had accepted it long ago, but still hated the feel of eyes upon him. Sometimes it felt like they were waiting ravenously, prepared for him to slip up and finally crack under the weight of responsibility, of him being Humanity’s Strongest.

Other times, he thought they were anticipating the moment he finally snapped and reverted back to being the thug they all knew he was under the layers of respectability he shrouded himself in. The ones he hated the most, however, were the lustful eyes upon him, greedy and hot, making the hairs on the back of his neck prickle in disgust.

Either way, Levi despised it, but as he did to everything else, he let their stares slip off of him like condensation from a glass.

Then Eren came along, just another added gaze that never left him, following his movements keenly like a hawk. But over time, Levi became aware that unlike others, Eren didn’t watch him with judgement or awe or disgust.

Eren simply observed quietly, eyes trailing after him wherever he went, and all Levi knew is that he _liked_ it.

**Genuine**

_Eren is always genuine and open with his feelings._

There was something about Eren that was different from others, Levi knew. It took him awhile to put his finger on it, but when he did, he felt foolish. It had been obvious from the beginning.

Everything about the shifter was genuine, from the interactions he had with other people, to the emotion that shone openly in his eyes. Eren Jaeger wore his heart on his sleeve, and proudly.

In a way, Levi was envious of that. He’d spent too many years holding things close to his chest to be comfortable being so open in such a vulnerable way.

In the morning, when he sat at the table with his bowl of lukewarm oatmeal, he reached for his glass only to remember that he’d forgotten his water. He was about to go back to get it when Eren breezed by, noticed, and after just a moment of hesitation, sat his own down in front of Levi.

“I haven’t taken a drink from it yet,” Eren said, a hint of nervousness in his voice, and fuck, is he really that terrifying? Levi wondered. He’d beaten the shit out of the kid, sure, but it had been necessary and Eren knew that.

“I’m already standing, I can go get another one,” he continued, even more nervousness seeping into his voice but before he can turn away, Levi reached out and grabbed his arm.

Eren froze, bright green eyes traveling down to the hand keeping him restrained, and Levi cursed to himself. What the fuck was he doing?

He’s _trying_ , he decides, and clears his throat. “Thank you,” he says quietly, the words coming out a bit oddly, because he can’t remember the last time he actually said it. Eren’s frozen in front of him, eyes wide and a bit wondering.

He releases Eren’s arm and settles back, grabbing the cup instead because he has to do something and feels fucking anxious and out of place. “I appreciate it,” he says, making another effort and thinks to tack on an, “Eren,” after it.

Erwin’s bright blue eyes are boring a hole straight into the side of his head as he takes a small sip of water from the cup. He strives for an air of casualness, even though he feels anything but. Eren seems to have snapped himself out of whatever fugue had overtaken him and makes a hasty exit, no doubt planning to avoid Levi for the rest of the day.

“If you don’t stop looking at me with those eyes, Eyebrows, I’m going to stab them out and feed them to you for breakfast,” Levi threatens darkly, staring down at the wood of the table.

He hears a soft rumble next to him as Erwin chuckles and Levi lets his head drop into his hands.

**Hover**

_Eren hovers when Levi is sick._

“It’s just a cold, you shitty woman,” Levi complains as Hanji forces him to lie back on his bed, but the insult lacks any teeth.

“You have a fever,” Hanji says, the back of her hand pressed against his forehead. “Here, Eren, come feel him and tell him he has a fever.”

Eren comes closer but instead of pressing his hand to Levi’s forehead, he brushes his lips over the skin instead. Hanji and Levi stare at him – when did Eren’s lips get so soft – he wonders, though it was stupid, just the fever talking because he’s never felt them before.

Eren just shrugs. “That’s the way my mom always checked,” he mutters, and Levi’s heart clenches at that. It doesn’t matter if Eren has the power of a titan at his fingertips, he’s still just a kid who’s lost his parents in the shitty circumstances of their world, but Levi sometimes forgets that.

If Levi thinks hard enough, he can almost remember his own mother, remembers the few times he fell ill as a child – but it’s unimportant now, and so he pushes the memories away. 

“Stay there, I’ll go get another cold compress,” Hanji says to Levi and after she leaves, Eren stays, keeping one eye on him to make sure he stays lying down while he putters around, refolding some clothes and picking up a broom to sweep.

Maybe having a fever isn’t so bad, Levi thinks, the sounds of Eren hovering around somehow soothing him into a light sleep.

**Indecisive**

_Eren knows which tea Levi wants when he can’t decide._

There are times when Levi just _can’t_ choose. It’s not that he doesn’t know what he wants, it’s that even after all these years above ground, he’s not used to the sheer number of options available to him. There are times that his mind stutters to a halt and he stands and stares at the boxes of tea in front of him in frustration.

It’s at those times that Eren notices and gently pushes him out of the way. “I’ll make us both tea, Captain,” he simply says, and Levi goes without a fuss.

When Eren brings him the tea, it’s always the perfect flavor and they sit sipping it in comfortable silence while Levi gets his mind working again.

**Jealous**

_Mikasa is jealous of Levi._

“But why did he have to choose _you_ ,” Mikasa slurred, grief etched onto her face. Levi followed her gaze and looked over to where Eren was playfully shoving Jean. In the lamplight, his chocolate-colored hair shone and as he glanced over at Levi and Mikasa with a grin on his face, his eyes glittered like emeralds.

His cheeks were flushed, a damp sheen of sweat on his face, and all Levi wanted to do was lick it off.

It had been a hard-won victory, but they had done it in the end. Paradis was free, and while there was mourning to be done, for this night at least, they could celebrate. Everyone deserved some happiness, he thought, and it was what was keeping him from rebuking those who had gotten a bit too deep into their cups.

“I don’t know,” Levi simply said, staring deeply into his glass of whiskey. Mikasa frowned at that, unsatisfied with his answer.

Levi threw back his drink, set the cup gently on the table and went to go retrieve Eren, feeling the girl’s hard stare at his back the entire way.


	3. K - O

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not entirely happy with these ones but I'm tired of looking at them so... 
> 
> Idk I might come back and rewrite these someday.

**Keep**

_Levi wants to keep Eren._

He’s had a shit life, but deep down, he knows others aren’t so lucky. He thinks of the Underground City, the damp and squalor of it, where the lack of sunlight made people’s legs rot off and death was something that was part of their everyday life – _though it’s not much different here in the Survey Corps_ , he thinks.

He remembers back to the jobs he did, the lives he took, the money he stole from others that were struggling just like him. He thinks back to some of the bright moments that shone even in the dark abyss beneath the rest of humanity, and those moments he holds close to his heart.

He remembers how Erwin pulled him out of filth and darkness and into the light – but at a price. He remembers Farlan and Isabel, still feels the hollow ache in his chest even now at how he had lost them but kept the sunlight and fresh air and freedom.

He looks down at Eren, head resting on his lap and lips parted slightly as he slept. It was late, and he had fallen asleep while Levi read him an old fairytale about a princess locked in a tower.

If he could, he would keep Eren locked away forever, keep him safe and away from danger, because if he lost Eren, he would lose himself as well.

He ran his fingers through soft chocolate strands, scratching gently at Eren’s scalp as he did so.

“If there’s one thing I can keep,” Levi whispers, pleads to anything that might be listening even though he knows he doesn’t deserve to ask, “let me keep you.”

**Love**

Levi has never been good with words. It was just a product of his upbringing, and old habits died hard. In the Underground, words were cheap and the only way to effectively communicate was with action.

Eren seems to get that, and never presses Levi for more, never expects him to return the sentiment when it’s expressed.

Instead, Levi shows it the only way he can, in the softness of his touches when they’re alone and unseen, the way he takes the time to straighten Eren’s harness when it’s a bit skewed, the gentle encouragement he gives Eren during training.

But one night, when it slips out and Eren’s eyes light up, Levi thinks that maybe words aren’t so bad after all.

**Measure**

The first time Levi really met him face-to-face and not when he was being dragged out of a titan, or through cell bars or while beating the shit out of him, he saw the kid’s green eyes flick up and down his body, silently taking his measure.

He’d heard from the rest of his squad that the kid had practically idolized him from a young age, and as soon as Jaeger opened his mouth, Levi knew some stupid shit about his height was going to tumble from the kid’s lips.

Even as Levi geared up to shove a sharp knee into his gut – his height was a _sore_ spot for him dammit – he instead heard, “You’re just like I imagined you’d be.”

That gave Levi pause and he looked up at the kid in surprise. “What?”

Jaeger had shrugged. “Sure, you’re not as tall as others,” and there it was, Levi was really about to kick the shit out of him now, “but I bet it’s what makes you fast, right? And people underestimate you too, so they don’t expect it when you kick their asses!”

Jaeger’s eyes shone brightly as he talked excitedly, and while Levi knew it was just the hero-worship talking…

Maybe having the kid on his squad wasn’t going to be as bad as he thought.

**Negotiate**

Levi’s eyes narrow and he slams the back of his head against the wooden door in annoyance. The situation had spiraled out of control, and he felt a bit ridiculous that it had come to this.

“I’ll give you three days off of cleaning duty,” he says. Eren was the only one who could meet his standards, but he could survive three days without.

He hears muttered whispering through the door, and then Armin calls, “He wants 5 days.”

Tossing a glare behind him, he curses as he remembers that they can’t see him through the door.

“4 days is the highest I’m willing to go,” Levi hisses. He tries and fails to prevent his eye from twitching, but it’s a lost cause. “I’m not going to just chop the entire thing off,” he tries to reason.

There’s more whispering, a pause, and then Armin says, “5 days off cleaning duty and he’ll do a half-inch more too.”

Eyebrows raising, Levi considered this new offer. The thought of their headquarters being not quite up to his standards for 5 days was… not ideal, but the thought of finally taking some of that annoying length off…

Sighing, Levi gets to his feet and dusts himself off. “I accept,” he grumbles, and the door unlocks.

Levi steps into the room, brandishing his scissors.

Eren tugs the tie from his hair, letting the soft, chocolate-colored mess tumble down. He sits heavily into a chair in front of Levi’s mirror as Armin drapes a towel around his shoulders.

Eren’s hair is long and silky and Levi loves combing his fingers through it, loves the way stray hairs framed his face. However, the sheer amount of split ends was getting out of hand and Eren couldn’t run away from getting his hair trimmed forever.

“Not a single centimeter over what we agreed,” Eren threatens as Armin brandishes a ruler, and Levi nods. He’d been cutting his own hair and maintaining the neatly-trimmed undercut for years now, so it was with confidence that he stepped forward and began carefully snipping at the brown strands.

**Order**

_Levi gives Eren one last order._

Levi was no stranger to giving orders. He’d been in the military for years, but even before Erwin dragged him out of the filth-infested slumhole that is the Underground City, he remembers Isabel and Farlan and –

_“Be careful,” had been the last thing he said, voice firm as he rode off, and the next time he had seen them, only their heads had remained._

But it was different now, he knew. Even though he was so weary, his leg throbbing like a bitch and his breath coming heavy and ragged, clawing at his throat, he kept pressing on because it was the only thing he knew how to do. They were stronger now, and Eren…

“I’ll take the ones on the left,” Levi said, reloading his guns, and he thought back to the last time he had said that, remembered Petra and Eld and all the others lost along the way. He was determined not to lose anyone else today.

Eren didn’t reply, and as he snapped the cartridge home, he glanced over to Eren. The shifter’s shoulders were bowed, his face etched in despair as he looked over the battlefield. “There’s so many of them…” he said faintly, and that made something in Levi snap. 

Levi reached out to fist a hand in Eren’s shirt and yanked him close. “Don’t you fucking give up,” Levi said lowly, eyes blazing with an inner fire and face twisted into a grimace. “I’m giving you one last order, Jaeger: you _will not_ die on me today.”

His heart slammed painfully in his chest at the words, at the thought of losing Eren. The shifter must see something in his face, because he stands tall, jaw clenching in renewed determination.

The sight gives Levi hope, because knows that Eren will follow his order through to the end.


	4. P - T

**Protect**

There’s a sort of precious innocence in the kid’s bright green eyes, a spark of hope that Levi knows is so rare nowadays, especially for one such as Eren who has already seen so much death in his short time alive.

Something within Levi threatens to break apart at the thought of that spark being snuffed out and in a silent vow, he swears to do whatever it takes to keep it alive, even if it costs him his life.

**Quarrel**

_Levi and Eren fight sometimes._

Just like any couple, Eren and Levi have their ups and downs. They’ve never gotten into a huge fight, but this time was worst than most and resulted in Eren storming out, leaving Levi to seethe. He ties back his hair with his old bandanna and covers his mouth with another and furiously scrubs the entire house clean, gritting his teeth as he works through the anger.

It’s late when Eren returns, the house dark and Levi already in bed, waiting.

No words are spoken as Eren undresses and slips in behind him, but the hand stroking through his hair is enough of a silent apology. They’ve both worked through their anger, wrung all the pent-up emotions out, so Levi rolls over and in quiet voices, they talk through what their argument was about, and Levi knows everything will be alright.

**Relief**

_Levi gets some good news._

“It’s entirely experimental, of course,” Hanji tells him, but her remaining eye is shining brightly, and something dangerously close to hope flares in Levi’s chest. “He’ll have to stay on top of the treatment religiously, but I think we can extend Eren’s life far past the couple of years he has left – Armin’s as well.”

Levi doesn’t say a word, doesn’t need to as he stands stiffly and nods at his Commander. He leaves and after he shuts the door, lets himself sag against the wood for just a moment.

Relief.

It races through him and suddenly, he _needs_ Eren, needs to find him because he’s going to fucking _live_.

He sets his jaw and marches outside, finds Eren surrounded by new recruits looking at him with stars in their eyes. They all knew the story of how Marley had been defeated because of Eren, but they also know about Captain Levi’s part in it, so when they see him storming up with his jaw clenched and remaining eye blazing, they blanch a bit.

Eren must have noticed that they lost his attention, follows their gaze and turns around. His brows furrow as he notices Levi’s expression and hell, even he goes a bit pale.

“Captain, what’s wrong?” he asks as Levi comes to a halt in front of him and glares up at him. When the fuck had Eren gotten so hellishly tall?

Without saying a word, he reaches out to grab the front of Eren’s shirt and yanks him down for a kiss.

Eren’s surprised, he can feel it in the stiffness of his lips before he relaxes and pulls Levi closer, returning the kiss.

Levi breaks away and fixes his eye on the shocked faces of the recruits. “Scram,” he says darkly, and they scatter like flies. Eren laughs breathlessly before pushing away a bit.

“What’s that about?” he asks, reaching up to smooth some of Levi’s hair away.

“Hanji says you’re going to live, Eren, much longer than-” and it was Levi’s turn to be shocked because Eren lets out a sharp cry of triumph and hauls Levi up, kissing him fervently.

**Steam**

Levi had never given much thought to steam before Eren came along. Clouds of steam during a hot shower, a few wisps curling from his teacup, a bit hissing from his clothes and blades as titan blood evaporated – it was just a part of life and not something he thought about in-depth.

But now, Levi hates it, has started to feel a bit of panic whenever he sees it, because it sends his mind spiraling down paths he’d rather avoid like the plague.

It’s all because he’s come to associate it with Eren being injured, and while he knows that Eren will heal from anything, a dark part of him still worries that someday, there will be something that Eren won’t be able to recover from.

**Tender**

Levi honestly didn’t know what to expect when he had started sleeping with Eren. A part of him had assumed that some of his brashness would transfer over, that he would be rough and unrestrained.

Instead, Levi was surprised to find that Eren was surprisingly gentle, almost tender with him. Eren whispered praise in his ear as warm, tanned fingers worked him open carefully, so slow and achingly gentle that it left him dazed and shivering in want. His bright green eyes were soft as he held Levi close, stroking his hair as he pushed inside slowly, making Levi feel full and whole in a way he never had before.

Even when Eren’s breath turned harsh and ragged and his thrusts sped up, making Levi’s body _sing_ , he never came close to hurting Levi. When he came, breathless and mindless and shuddering at the pleasure of it, Eren held him close and worked him through it, trailing soft kisses down his neck.

Levi had never known this kind of attention before, but under it, he slowly allowed himself to let go and flourish under Eren’s gentle care.


	5. U - Z

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> X and Z were a bit hard without prompts but eh, they didn't turn out too badly.

**Umbrella**

The ride back from the city had been a long one, and on the last leg, the skies had finally opened up and started pouring down the rain that had been threatening for the past couple of days. Levi dismounted, handed his horse's reins off to a trainee and started slogging through the rapidly-forming rainpuddles, intent on stripping his drenched clothes off and taking a hot bath as soon as possible.

Levi heard his name called and looked up, dark scowl fading as he saw Eren from a distance. Eren’s face was beaming, but as Levi saw what he was holding, he couldn’t help but roll his eyes. A very dry Eren was jogging over, holding an umbrella.

“I’m already wet, there’s no point in bringing that out,” Levi called as Eren drew closer. He was absolutely dripping, clothes completely drenched through. What was another 30 seconds of rain?

“Stop fussing and get under here with me,” Eren said firmly, not allowing Levi to protest. He tugged Levi under the umbrella, rubbing a heated hand over his arm in an attempt to generate some friction and warm Levi’s rain-chilled skin. It was nice, Levi had to admit, and Eren’s shifter body heat was able to permeate through his admittedly cold clothes, soaked through as they were. 

The rain pattered gently onto the slick material of the umbrella as Levi subtly shifted closer, trying to get more of that warmth while also attempting to not get Eren wet.

But Eren, observant as always, noticed what Levi was doing and with a small smile, he wrapped his free arm around Levi, pulling him close. Levi opened his mouth to protest, because he didn’t want Eren to get wet, but the shifter silenced him with a swift kiss to the top of his head.

“I have a hot bath ready for you,” Eren murmured into his hair. “Let’s get you inside and warmed up before you catch a cold.”

Levi couldn’t help the small smile that pulls on his lips at that, and without further ado, let Eren usher him inside, water splashing at their feet.

**Victory**

_Levi lets himself enjoy their win._

It’s after the battle and he’s covered in blood (some of it his, some of it from others) and aching and he can’t see out of his left eye and that should be worrying him, but all he feels is relief as he staggers towards their little group of survivors, picking Eren out in a second. Eren is steaming, multiple cuts and wounds no doubt hissing as they heal, but he’s alive and that’s all that matters.

Eren spots him instantly and sprints forward, reaching out to pull him into a bone-crushing hug. “I thought you were dead after I lost you,” he whispers into Levi’s hair, and Levi has to swallow back the lump threatening to form in his throat.

“Not quite,” he manages to choke out and then Eren pulls back and kisses him fervently, stealing his breath away. He’s shocked at first, and then he melts, pushing closer to Eren’s firm body while tangling his fingers in soft, long strands of hair and licking into Eren’s mouth.

Distantly, he can hear their little squad letting out surprised exclamations, and he thinks he hears someone – probably Connie – whoop and call out, “Get some, Eren!” and that’s definitely Jean’s voice yelling, “I _fucking_ knew it!”

But it’s secondary to the feel of Eren against him, and he doesn’t care if they’ve just been outed to what’s left of the Survey Corps, because they’ve just survived hell and _won_.

**Wild**

Eren is the sort of person that Levi has never encountered before, never thought he’d be drawn to, much less fall head over heels in love with. He’s loud when he talks and reckless when they’re fighting, can be rough when they fuck and Levi can’t help but notice his presence as soon as Eren walks into the room.

He’s brash and open and wild and Levi hopes that he never changes.

**Xylograph**

He finds Eren outside one late afternoon, some time after they returned from the 57th expedition. Eren’s shoulders are tense and he has a piece of wood in one hand, a knife in the other as he digs at the wood in sharp, jerky motions, carving and shaping it. Levi draws closer, and something in his throat closes up when he notices it looks a bit like Eld.

Levi pulls a knife from his boot and settles close to Eren. He ignores the surprised glance Eren gives him, and instead he reaches out and grabs a piece of wood from the pile that Eren’s collected.

“Show me,” he says, and soon, Eren is guiding his hands, showing him how to carve along the grain. It’s not much, but the darkness in Eren’s eyes has abated a bit and he’s patient with Levi, hands gentle upon his own.

It hurts now, Levi knows, but he can see that Eren’s calmed down a bit. The fading rays of the afternoon sun are warm against his skin and they grieve together in silence as they carve out little memories of the ones they’ve lost.

**Youth**

_Levi has misgivings about Eren’s age._

Sometimes, Levi gets too into his head and starts fretting about the difference in their age. Eren is so young and bright-eyed and _gorgeous_ and he could have anyone he wanted. They’re in the city that day, and he sees the young women and men who turn to look at Eren, following him with their eyes. Eren, attentive to Levi's mood as always, notices something is wrong and follows Levi’s gaze. Somehow, he quickly figures out what is bothering Levi – Eren had always been good at reading him.

“If I’m old enough to win us a war, I’m old enough to choose who I love,” Eren tells him with a roll of his eyes. He cups Levi’s face gently in a large hand then bends down to kiss him, banishing all misgivings from his mind.

**Zombie**

Even after years of training and rising at the ass-crack of dawn, Eren still hasn’t become a morning person. He staggers into the dining hall each morning, hair mussed and eyes drooping from grogginess, looking like one of the zombies described in Levi’s old books.

Levi can’t relate, because he’s always been fond of waking up in the mornings and getting a head start on the day, no matter how late he stayed awake the night before.

Eventually Levi learns it’s because of the nightmares, and that Levi can relate to. Still, he needs the kid awake and focused and so one day, he impulsively has an extra cup of coffee prepared. When Eren comes trudging into the dining hall and sits down with Levi and the rest of his squad, Levi silently nudges the mug over to him. There is a bit of shock in Eren’s eyes, but he accepts it anyway and perks up a bit at the first sip.

Levi makes it a habit to have a cup ready for him in the morning and while Eren never outright acknowledges it, he knows the kid is grateful and it soothes something in his heart to be able to take care of him, even if it’s in this simple way.


End file.
